The present invention relates generally to storing data and specifically to providing data backups of stored data.
Snapshots are sometimes used for file system backups and the like. When a backup is performed, first a snapshot is created, and a baseline of the file system is acquired. Next, out of the files included in the snapshot, a list of the files to be backed up is generated. For example, when files owned by a certain user are backed up, a list of the user's files may be generated. Similarly, a differential and incremental backup may include generating a list of the files created or updated after the previous backup. An application for backup (and the like) may copy the files identified in the list to a backup medium and delete the snapshot when all the files to be backed up have been copied.